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Lloyds blames changing customer behaviour for job cuts

20 June 2018

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Lloyds Banking Group is axing another 450 jobs, citing improved productivity and customers going digital. The losses will be partially offset by the creation of 255 roles as part of the British bank's £3 billion technology investment plan.

The back office job losses have been put down to "changes in customer behaviour", as people carry out their banking over their phones.

Says a spokesperson: "Today’s announcement involves making difficult decisions, and we are committed to working through these changes in a careful and sensitive way.”

Lloyds has axed tens of thousands of jobs over the last few years and is currently in the midst of a programme to shut 400 branches and shrink hundreds more, ditching tellers in favour of tablet-wielding wandering staffers.

In February the bank announced plans to invest £3 billion over the next three years to transform the business into a "digitised, simple, low risk, customer focused, UK financial services provider".

The 255 new roles are part of this plan, which the spokesperson says "will see a stronger focus on new technology and people, equipping teams with the specific skills required to advise and support our customers".

Separately, Barclays is moving nearly 400 back office jobs from Cardiff and Coventry. Most of the positions are going to another UK site, Northampton, with about 70 transferred to Pune in India.

Dominic Hook, Unite national officer, says: "Unite is clear that Barclays bank is failing in its responsibilities to its staff and customers in the Cardiff and Coventry areas. These plans offer no current mitigation against the planned job losses and the union is demanding that the bank revisit these damaging plans."